Prayer Works Morning Devotion: May 23, 2025

"Waiting On The Holy Spirit - Getting Our Hearts Ready for Pentecost"

"Matthew 3:16-17 - This Is My Son Whom I Love, With Him I Am Well Pleased "

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A very good morning to you everybody. I hope you had a wonderful evening and a wonderful rest. And we are up and ready and let's go to the Lord in prayer. Heavenly Father, we thank you this morning for your goodness and your mercy towards us.  

We thank you for this opportunity to come together to fellowship with one another. But also to fellowship with you. We thank you know that this is the day that you made, we are rejoicing in it and we're glad in it.  

Thank you for redeeming us from the curse of the law. Even though we are crucified with you, and nevertheless we still live, we thank you, Lord, that your word dwells in us richly. We are able to say we are blessed, we are healed, we are set free, sin cannot dwell in us.  

The number of our days you will fulfill, sin will never dominate us because the seed of God's word lives in us. We thank you for the gift of the Holy Spirit, who counsel us, who directs us, who gives us instructions.  

We thank you that your love for us is so deep that you promise that you will never leave us nor forsake us. So Father as we continue to immense ourselves, in you and in your holy scriptures.  

We believe that our growth will continue and that you continue to lead us towards the path of righteousness. So as we come to you this morning we continue to broaden our shoulders broaden our thinking, broaden the way we see you. 

May we continue to grow anew for we desire to continuously grow and to know you even better. So bless this morning devotion as we gather around your word. Bless us, bless our plans, bless desires, bless our families, bless all that we do in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, we pray Amen.  

Today we are in Matthew 3:16-17. This is the day that Jesus was baptized by John the Baptist. So after Jesus being baptized by John the Baptist, Jesus came out of the water and the heavens opened and Jesus sees the spirit of God descending on him like a dove. A voice from the heaven declares.  

This is my son whom I love. With him, I am well pleased. This is one of the most important passages in the scriptures because we get the confirmation from God himself of who Jesus is.  

Prior to this event Jesus is telling us that he is the son of God. That he came from the heavens. That on this time God confirms who he is for all to hear and for all to see. So This is why this passenger scripture is so important. It portrays all three persons of the Trinity in action. God the Father who is speaking. 

And then the son being baptized. And the Holy Spirit descending as a dove and resting on him. So Father, Son, the Holy Spirit all together. The Trinity in action. Then God's voice is confirming and expressing divine satisfaction in who Jesus is and his works that he was doing on the earth.  

And now he is being empowered to go through all that, Jesus had to go through from this particular day moving forward. So we get the true identity of Jesus the Messiah to those people who were present. And for them to have a if there was any doubt.  

If there was any lingering ideas or thoughts about who Jesus was? This was for all to see. The Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit all coming together in this particular event one of the greatest events that ever took place in our world.  

When God's voice is heard loudly proclaiming who Jesus was And Matthew recorded this. So that you and I understand and know for sure that Jesus is the son of God. So if anyone ever asked how do you know Jesus is the son of God?  

We can go to Matthew 3:6, where God himself approves and causes of, oh Jesus is approves of who he is and we get to see the Holy Spirit in action. This also serves as an example for all of us. That Jesus baptism is what happens to us when we get baptized to. That we are baptized into Christ.  

And the Holy Spirit is always present. So that you are enshrined into the body of Christ. So we are seeing what takes place in baptism. Now the only difference is that the State of God was seen like a dove. And I don't know anybody who has been baptised and the Holy Spirit fell from the sky like a dove and landed on them.  

But we are being shown this image so that we have an understanding of what takes place at baptism. That event when somebody is getting baptized. The Holy Spirit always descends. So that you are baptized into the body of Christ.  

So brothers and sisters. We have the gift of the Holy Spirit that has been given to us as a confirmation, but also enshrine us into the body of Christ. And we are shown through Matthew 3:16-17. 

How that divine event looks like spiritually. So that you and I can have this picture and image of what this is and how significant and important. That’s why the scripture says when somebody gets baptized, all of heaven rejoices.  

Why? Because you are now being enshrined into the body of Christ. You are one with us, so this is what baptism looks like. Being immense into but on this particular event there’s divine approval, there’s the empowering of ministry for Jesus and God confirms.  

He confirms who Jesus is so that nobody can ever doubt who Jesus is. And which gives us also answers if anyone ever asked how do you know that Jesus is the son of God? Matthew 3 God spoke and it was heard.  

That this is my son in whom I am well pleased with. From this event here Jesus goes on to do incredible, phenomenal things because the Holy Spirit was indwelling in him and walking with him and empowering him.  

That's the example we have in Christ. This event is the example that we have in baptism, so we have an understanding of what that is spiritually and how we also have gone through this process.  

So that we are enshrined into the body of Christ. Now I was sitting here earlier on just thinking about this event because sometimes when we read these things, it can be over the top or sometimes it can just stop and really think about how the heavens opened.  

I want you to imagine the heavens opening up and you see the spirit of God coming down and descending and seeking on somebody, and it descends like a dove. I mean, that's amazing to think about the distance between earth in heaven.  

And then you see the heavens open and the spirit of God now descends like a dove and season Jesus. That's a powerful picture. If you are to witness such a thing. This is one of the events where the heavens opened and God brought out his spirit.  

Now when the scripture now says in the last days I will pour out my spirit and on all flesh. I mean, we can see the picture here of what that looks like when God pulls out his and it lands and sits on a person.  

And this is why sometimes I pray Lord eyes. Because the things that takes place and happens spiritually are incredible, amazing. Seeing the heavens open and the spirit of God descending like a dove. Brothers and sisters, this is the gift that God has given us. The gift of the Holy Spirit to work with, to counsel, to instruct.  

And we see this divine encounter and you seek the Holy Spirit in Jesus Ministry in life. So that you and I can have a reference point of what that is what it looks like and the empowering of it.  

So that we all should know and we all should never doubt. Because we have these examples in these scriptures. Now this is the same thing that takes place on Acts. When the disciples were gathered on that day of Pentecost.  

The spirit of God fell and is rested on them in as much as it rested on Jesus. And after the spirit of God rested on them they were empowered to do incredible, phenomenal acts of ministry. That's where the book is called the Acts of apostles.  

The actions of the Apostles and what they did after the Holy Spirit empowered them. Again, the scriptures were written for us to follow. But also as a reference point of how God relates and functions with humanity 

So that you and I when we see that we recognize how that also can happen and how God can relate and functions with us here in the 21st century. So I pray that we continue to see these images.  

So that your understanding and your growth and your development as a Christian continues to grow so that we can fulfill all that God. Is placed in every single one of us to fulfill in this lifetime.  

So, Father, we pray special blessing to your people. To bless their going ins and their going out. We bless their families and everything that is connected to them. We bless their ideas to bless the things they desire to accomplish. We bless the works of their hands and the works of the one that sent them.  

We bless their dwelling places. The place they inhabit. We bless ideas that elevates and changes family dynamics and growth. We know the enemy would try to throw whatever he desires to throw against us.  

But God we are so blessed in that the spirit of God is upon us to guide, to console, to instructs to give direction to be a companion. And I pray, Lord, may we be aware of him in all that we do. May we walk in the gifts of the Holy Spirit.  

May the fruits of the Holy Spirit grow in us so that those who we encounter will eat from us. Help us with our attitudes through the fruits of the spirit so that as we relate to one another.  

The joy, love and kindness self-control this portion of our relationships. I pray Lord that may we continue to be empowered by the Holy Spirit in all that we do. In the things that we work on, in the instructions that comes out of our lips to our children. 

May those instructions be coupled with the gift of the Holy Spirit. So that our words can empower our children. In the path they should go so that when they are old they will not depart from it.  

Lord, we bless every child. Every nephew, every niece. Pray Lord that in our efforts of raising godly families. May our children continue to be found in you. We come against the spirit of torment that others might be dealing with.  

We know there are so many things that are bombarding us in this era. But God we know you sent the Holy Spirit to be a gift to these lives that we follow. So we pray, Lord, that may he continue to enlighten us.  

So that every step that we take guided by the Holy Spirit. Thank you for filling us for the task ahead and for the things that we desire to accomplish. Thank you for healing us for the spirit without measure.  

As it goes through our bodies and touching every square inch and healing it. Thank you for transforming our minds so that we have godly force. Father I pray for our children if some of them start summer break.  

Pray for their protection as families travel back and forth to different places. I pray for family unity. Pray for family strength. Pray for peace and understanding. I pray for wisdom for parents to instruct children in godly things.  

Pray for journey mercies, as we cover those who travel back and forth on these highways. Your spirit guides and keep us attentive as children go back and forth to the beach and different places and vacation.  

We shut the spirit of harm and danger that may our children and their families be protected from any tragic events. Send angels on assignment to guide and protect our children, in all they do.  

Their interactions with their friends when we are not present, I pray for the Holy Spirit to be a voice of reason to send angels on assignment to protect them, to guide them. When we have entrusted them to other people to drive them or to go to different places. Use them as an example in the name of Jesus.  

I pray  Lord that this summer will be an incredible summer where spiritually, we grow in understanding, in wisdom in knowledge. So bless the beginning of this summer and be with us to Lord of it as they rest and prepare for the next year.  

Pray for their safety and pray for strength and wisdom as they get involved in so many different things in the summer, I pray Lord may you guide them in everything they do. Thank you for provisioning.  

We know we're dealing with these economic challenging times, but Father the word says why should we worry if you can give good gifts, why should we worry about what, knowing that the Father in heaven who feeds birds can never leave us in need.  

So I pray every need met and I pray Lord for blessings in the name of Jesus, protect our homes to fix our cars in the name of Jesus. Father, we pray this prayer and we seal it knowing that you are quick to come to our aid.  

So we bless you, we honor you for who you are and what you have done for us and what you're still going to do as we look ahead with excitement and joy of knowing that you are able to visit us and she indulges any moment, anytime.  

I pray that made this journey that we are on and as we continue to walk towards that great day. Continue to bless us in everything that we do. Now be with us today as we go through about our business, with our interactions with different ones.  

Continue to equip us with words of wisdom and knowledge, continue to come from us. So that we continue to make quality decisions in the things that come our way. Bless everything that we will do today.  

And I pray, Lord, may you lead us not into temptation, but continue to deliver us from the evil one, for thine is the Kingdom, the power and the glory forever and ever, Amen. Brothers and sisters may you have an awesome Friday.  

The beginning of summer break for some of our children and may the Lord bless your weekend in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ. We'll see you on Sunday for Bible study. And if you can’t join us on Sunday, see you on Monday back on this prayer call.